KANSAS CITY, MO – Chiefs coach Andy Reed was in stable condition Sunday night after quickly leaving Arrowhead Stadium with an unspecified illness after the 30-24 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers.
A team spokesman said Reed was feeling ill but coached the duration of the match.
The 63-year-old has been taken to a Kansas City hospital, where he is “doing well” and resting.
“Coach Andy Reed fell ill at the end of the match,” the team said in a statement. “He was evaluated by our medical staff in the locker room and as a precaution he was taken to the University of Kansas Health System for further evaluation. The coach is in good condition, is currently resting and in stable condition.”
“The coach wasn’t feeling well,” said special teams coach Dave Top, who was left to deal with questions after a second straight loss in the fourth quarter. “He spoke with the team.”
In fact, quarterback Patrick Mahomes said his coach “looked good on the sidelines too” as the two bosses (1-2) missed a chance to beat the Charger with four turnovers, several costly penalties and many missed assignments.
“He came and talked to us and looked fine,” Mahomes said of the locker room after the game. “That’s all I really know.”
The Chiefs started the game by turning the ball over three consecutive possessions, including a pair of fumbles and a pass from Mahomes that bounced off the intended wide receiver into Asante Samuel Jr.’s hands.
He basically ended up throwing another interception by Mahomes with 1:42 remaining in the fourth quarter.
The game was still tied at that point, but their suspect defense β which allowed 12 consecutive runs in the red zone to turn into a touchdown to start the season β seemed like a foregone conclusion that Los Angeles was headed into the end zone.
The Chiefs allowed a 15-yard pass to Keenan Allen in third, then DeAndre Baker was called in to interfere with the pass in fourth a few minutes later to give Los Angeles a fresh set of touchdowns. Then Justin Herbert hit Mike Williams with consecutive passes, the second 32 seconds before the game gave the Chargers the lead for good.
Asked what Reed said next, a retracted Clyde Edwards Heller replied, “It pretty much won’t be as exaggerated as it gets us. We know what we’ve done wrong. We know what we need to correct.”
βHe came in and told us – it wouldn’t necessarily be okay, but the things we could fix that could make it okay. That’s what we need to get into and deal with tomorrow. That’s what it is,” added Edwards Heller. Tonight, and see what we can correct, come tomorrow and do our business.”
Edwards-Helair had a flop of one of two Chiefs on Sunday, making up for what had been an otherwise strong day with a 100-yard dash and touchdown reception. Edwards Heller also faltered in the last minute last week in Baltimore, preventing the Chiefs from having a chance to kick a winning field goal in the 36-35 defeat.
“Anyone can see the movie and you’ll see we beat ourselves up,” Edwards Heller said. “It’s those little, minute details that hurt us. We say, ‘It’s a game of inches.’ It’s going to be those little things we see in the movie: a step here, a step there that we feel will make a difference. We’ve had four shifts and it’s still all about the wires.”